All New Henry and Glenn Comics and Stories - Tom Neely

 

Tom Neely is an old friend of ours and I know I've ranted'n'raved about his work numerous times before. One of his more popular creations is the Henry and Glenn comics - imagining Henry Rollins and Glenn Danzig in a relationship with neighbors Hall and Oates (yes, those Hall and Oates) as Satan worshipers and a revolving cast of characters.

Here Henry's cat passes and Glenn convinces him to get another, which is good for Henry but not so much for Glenn, as he has to cat-sit for the creature as Glenn stars in a "Jon Twaters" updated version of Hershel Gordon Lewis' "2000 Maniacs" as "2020 Maniacs"! 

Anyway, lots of LA in-jokes, special appearances, crazy cat adventures and amazing artwork as the tale comes to a relative end, but hopefully with plenty of follow-up adventures to come!

The "Stories" section is also pretty hilarious with an apparently true story of Tom ending up sitting next to a member of Samhain on a several hour airplane ride!

Yes, we've been friends with Tom for a couple of decades, but he is one of the more talented people that we know, as well. Certainly check this one out!

recommended gigs

          

Thursday 10-31-24 - The Jackets and more at the Dive Bar

Saturday 11-2-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-4-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-6-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Friday 11-8-24 - Femaliens with Rhythm Ace and the Nu-Tones at Red Dwarf

Saturday 11-9-24 - VaVoom, Decaying Tigers at the Triple Down

Saturday 11-9-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-11-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-13-24 - Hillbilly Casino and Shanda and the Howlers at the Usual Place

Saturday 11-16-24 - the Crotches, the Shakewells, the Style Cramps at the Griffin

Saturday 11-16-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 11-17-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 11-18-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 11-22-24 - The Implosions, The Ghostwood Murder and the Hideaway at Fat Cat

Friday 11-22-24 - Venomous Pinks, Minges, Femaliens, the Has Knots at the Griffin

Saturday 11-23-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-25-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-27-24 - Thee Swank Bastards' Basstravaganza At the Double Down

Wednesday 11-27-24 - CM Wolf and the Backbones at Backstage Bar and Billiards

Saturday 11-30-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sat 2-22-25 - the Silhouettes at Red Dwarf

Stan Lee - A Life - by Bob Batchelor

 

Being a fan of Marvel comics for practically my entire life, of course I was interested in this book when I saw it on our local library's shelf. Published in 2022, this is a relatively recent release so I'm kinda surprised that I didn't know about it until now.

This is a straight-forward biography, and Batchelor keeps the tale flowing in a fascinating and compelling way. Stanley Lieber, the son of Jewish Romanians who were escaping persecution in Europe, grew up as the Great Depression hit, causing economic turmoil throughout the country and especially in the ethic conclave that he lived in. He took whatever odd jobs he could find while in school - and was a strong student, apparently, gregarious and popular, who worked on the school paper, among other things - and as soon as he graduated, he searched for more permanent employment. Although the stories vary somewhat, he ended up as a gofer at Timely Comics, working for none other than Joe Simon and Jack Kirby - already true stars in the burgeoning comic industry. 

After the success of their rivals in DC Comics with Superman and Batman, Timely hits big with Simon and Kirby's Captain America and with the need to grow and fill out the comics, Stan is soon hired to write and even create his own characters. While these early heroes never became household names, they have been referenced in Marvel stories over the years, so they are never quite forgotten. Funnily, Simon and Kirby were soon both sacked and Stan essentially ran the comics division as writer, editor and art director, all as a teen!

Of course, times changed and eventually Timely became Atlas which became Marvel and as the industry evolved and Stan was able to keep it reasonably profitable, he was able to re-hire Kirby, along with super talents like Steve Ditko and John Romita, Jr. With these collaborators in tow, he co-created the legends that we are familiar with today, starting with the Fantastic Four, followed by Spider-Man, the Hulk, Thor and many more.

I hadn't realized that Stan had to report to the publisher and have him ok Stan's ideas, or that Stan would have to create a hero or team based on the publisher's whims - but this was something that he was used to as they previously went from romance to westerns to horror to monsters to funny animals and more. So, some of the more ludicrous ideas were used simply to try to keep the title alive, rather than being a creative breakthrough from the team. The FF was the result of needing to create a "team" (to rival DC's Justice League) and the publisher hated Spider-Man so much that he debuted in a magazine's final issue. He also hated the Hulk and Thor, so there ya go!

I also never knew that, despite the many, many successes in the 1960's, Marvel still trailed behind DC in overall sales and, while Marvel's sales were fairly consistent, there were lots of financial problems behind the scenes, with Stan and company never really knowing if everything would collapse at any moment. "Smilin' Stan Lee" kept a good face in the editorial pages and Marvel Bullpen section of the books, never hinting at these issues.

Of course, Marvel did eventually eclipse DC in sales but throughout its history, there were economic turmoil behind the scenes, despite the successes. This led the company to try to expand to other media - TV, movies, etc., as well as merchandising. Stan does leave the editor's seat and concentrates on these other chores with limited success for many years, although he manages to keep his own face and name known and supplants his salary with speaking engagements.

Frankly, once he leaves the creative side of the comics, the story gets less interesting for me and I had no idea that he was involved in numerous projects that crashed'n'burned all too often. But, the early days, as usual, are quite exciting and I truly enjoyed the tale, even if it may concentrate on Stan at the expense of some contributors, even as Batchelor tries to keep a balance.

In any case, any fan of Marvel will certainly enjoy this one!

Leonard Cohen - The Mystical Roots of Genius by Harry Freedman

 

This was a random pickup from my last library visit and I grabbed it simply because I am a fan of the man, especially his early work. Freedman's concept is an unusual one, though. This is not a biography but a thesis on Cohen's lyrics in the context of religious allegories. Of course, Cohen was raised a Jew, but was very familiar with the Christian Bible and later became a Buddhist monk, so there is plenty of religious iconography to go around!

While I generally believe that each person should interpret lyrics in their own way - as, most often, the lyricist intends - and that an outsider forcing their interpretations on the words inevitably fails, I must say that Freedman certainly knows his religious texts and makes a good case for their basis for Cohen's words. This is especially true considering Cohen's religious background, upbringing and continued learnings.

Of course, for a songwriter as creative and expressive as Cohen, it would be unusual to simply quote or even reinterpret the earlier writings. He reinvents, re-contextualizes, combines and simply turns stories on their heads in order to fit into his lyrical scheme. Freedman seems to essentially follow Cohen's line of thinking, although I would never believe that anyone other than the songwriter would ever have the last say in a song'a meaning.

The book is interesting in that it jumps around Cohen's discography non-chronologically, so that there is no emphasis on one era or style of his. I myself am a huge fan of his first three albums and then lost interest (and, as much as I have tried, none of his other records comes close to those, excluding his first live album, of course), so my interest is kept as he moves from later works to these earlier songs. I do think that his explanations at times quotes too directly from the lyrics that he is attempting to explain, but I guess there are only so many ways to describe a line of poetry.

I suppose, in a way, that the concept was fairly obvious given Cohen's religious leanings and background, but there are plenty of insights here, even if the text can be a bit clinical all too often. So, an interesting theory'n'book, but as a read, not completely captivating. There are a couple of actual biographies on the man htat I've read and expounded on previously, and those are a bit more compelling, simply due to the fact that they aren't as scholastic. But, this is definitely worth reading for fans of the man's work.

recommended gigs

            

Thursday 10-24-24 - Negative Nancys, Switch to Fakie and Mersa at the Triple Down at the Punk Rock Museum

Friday 10-25-24 - The Hypnotiques at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 10-26-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 10-27-24 - Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 10-28-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Thursday 10-31-24 - The Jackets and more at the Dive Bar

Saturday 11-2-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-4-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-6-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Friday 11-8-24 - Femaliens with Rhythm Ace and the Nu-Tones at Red Dwarf

Saturday 11-9-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-11-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-13-24 - Hillbilly Casino and Shanda and the Howlers at the Usual Place

Saturday 11-16-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 11-17-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 11-18-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 11-22-24 - The Implosions, The Ghostwood Murder and the Hideaway at Fat Cat

Friday 11-22-24 - Venomous Pinks, Minges, Femaliens, the Has Knots at the Griffin

Saturday 11-23-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-25-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-27-24 - Thee Swank Bastards' Basstravaganza At the Double Down

Saturday 11-30-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Vampirella VS. the Superpowers

 

Also grabbed from the local library - maybe a little surprisingly, but I suppose they probably have items that are more provocative in their collection.

Of course, I have been a fan of Vamp ever since I discovered the scantily-clad vampire (and I have - or had, not sure since everything is in storage - a collection of her Warren comics) and most variations on this theme have worked in one form or another. This time out, it's a whole new world - literally. We are on a parallel Earth in 1948 where super powered beings have existed since the early 1900's and initiated and ended the two world ("super") wars and besides "natural" supes, there are beings that have supplanted their natural powers with either technology or "elixirs", which can be temporary (for use in the armed services) or permanent. Supes have become part of the world, one way or another, and are even running for president!

Vamp is from another world and has been tasked to covertly attempting to rid this world of the elixirs so that it can evolve more naturally - or maybe the supes of Vamp's world just doesn't like the competition? In any case, there is plenty of intrigue, lots of violence, this world's super-agency more or less chasing the same thing as Vamp (containing supes and the illegal elixirs) and colliding with Vamp and her cohort Dyna Might, and, of course, lots more.

Pretty decent tale, actually, and if I remember correctly, Vamp was initially an alien from another world, so that is in keeping with the original mythos, in its own way. Certainly worth a read and makes me want to dig out my old books!

Catwoman - Valley of the Shadow of Death

 

Another random library pick, but this one i quite enjoyed. Salina Kyle is basically running "Alleytown", although in this installment, it's not completely clear what that means. She seems to be skirting the law, but maybe not actually committing crimes, as her previous self would have done, and she believes in protecting her "constituents". But, of course, people have other ideas, and all the usual suspects get involved - Riddler, Penguin and especially Poison Ivy, who has been captured and is being used as a catalyst for a new kind of drug infecting the city.

On top of all this there is a religious vigilante named Father Valley (maybe not their most creative moniker) who is making his way through the city, seemingly randomly murdering and torturing. Naturally, the law (corrupt and otherwise) is making things difficult for Salina, as well.

This graphic novel was number 5 in a series, so lots happened before and, ntach, much more must have happened after. I will have to look out for the series, as this was well done!

recommended gigs

           

Thursday 10-17-24 - Dr. Phobic and the Phobic-Tones and the Unoriginal Unfits at Red Dwarf

Friday 10-18-24 - Big Sandy with Shanda and the Howlers at the Sand Dollar Downtown 

Friday 10-18-24 & Saturday 10-19-24 - Rayford Bros./BatBand at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 10-19-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 10-21-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 10-23-24 - Dion Lunadon, the Acid Sisters, Cromm Fallon and the P200 at the Usual Place 

Thursday 10-24-24 - Negative Nancys, Switch to Fakie and Mersa at the Triple Down at the Punk Rock Museum

Friday 10-25-24 - The Hypnotiques at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 10-26-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 10-27-24 - Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 10-28-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Thursday 10-31-24 - The Jackets and more at the Dive Bar

Saturday 11-2-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-4-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-6-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Friday 11-8-24 - Femaliens with Rhythm Ace and the Nu-Tones at Red Dwarf

Saturday 11-9-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-11-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-13-24 - Hillbilly Casino and Shanda and the Howlers at the Usual Place

Saturday 11-16-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 11-17-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 11-18-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 11-22-24 - The Implosions, The Ghostwood Murder and the Hideaway at Fat Cat

Friday 11-22-24 - Venomous Pinks, Minges, Femaliens, the Has Knots at the Griffin

Saturday 11-23-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-25-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-27-24 - Thee Swank Bastards' Basstravaganza At the Double Down

Saturday 11-30-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

The Superior Foes of Spider-Man

 

Made another trip to the library and picked up a couple issues of this graphic novel to see what Marvel is doing with Spider-Man and his foes these days - relatively speaking - I guess this series started about 10 years ago! 

First off, somehow Doctor Octopus has somehow commandeered Peter Parker's body (I believe) and is acting as Spider-Man. He is fighting the bad guys, but doing so in a vicious manner - much more so that PP would have done, but effective, nonetheless. In the two chapters that I picked up, though, Spidey/Doc is hardly involved, and this series depicts the misadventures of Boomerang and his gang of misfit villains, including Tombstone's daughter as a female Beetle.

Lots of second and third (and further) tier bad guys get involved but the story is written for chuckles, with basically everyone being a total fuckup with innumerable insecurities and issues galore. I don't look for my heroes or villains to be perfect these days, but, for me, this takes it all overboard a bit, with everyone being such schmucks that you don't really care what happens to any of them.

Apparently, this is/was an ongoing series, so others must not have had the problems with this that I have had, but it didn't click with me. Maybe I'm just not meant for the modern comic world and I should stick to the reissues! 

Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch, Oct 6, 2024

 This day was a special Sunday Brunch Day at Red Dwarf as our friend Nikki Ruffling was celebrating her birthday with her boyfriend's band, the Generic Surf Band. Cake, pizza, drinks, and lots of snappy drums, wanderin' bass lines and reverbed guitar with hip surf videos playing in the background!

The Generic Surf Band runs through several sets of traditional ("generic") surf music, with Mark Bartchi leading the way with his swingin', fast-paced drumming combining with the bass for a solid footing for Phil's great-sounding guitar work (usually with amazing, vintage guitars)! This day Nikki sat in for a tune (Phil and Thee Swank Bastards' Jesse Del Quaddro has been teaching her) and bartendress Daisy also played bass for a couple of numbers. (Second bartendress Sara did not sit in, but she did her magic behind the bar!)

Lots of friends and assorted folks in attendance and we even spotted a homemade Swamp Gospel shirt! Always a good time with the GSB and Red Dwarf!

King's Road - Max Decharne

 

Obviously, anyone who has been interested in pop culture in England knows that King's Road has been one of the epicenters of Britishness for decades, and once I saw a review of this in Ugly Things (possibly, although the book is almost 20 years old, so it wouldn't have been a very current review), I figured I needed to pick it up to learn a bit more about this area.

Decharne is certainly British himself as he writes as if everyone knows the ins'n'outs of the areas, people, politics and so on that he is referring to. So, that assumption can be problematic for someone who is not intimate with the workings of the country, as the references and often the slang'n'sayings are meaningless to a midwestern boy like me.

There are several chapters dedicated to the earliest of times of the area, which can be a little tedious, although they are certainly informative and lay the groundwork and Max tries to keep the reader involved by informing that the area that once was a part of a king's land later became Malcolm McLaran's shop or something similar. Of course, the street is named for the fact that a king (Charles, I believe) used to use it to visit his mistress(es), and there is plenty of history in the area as well as luminaries that have lived there over the centuries.

But naturally, the reason to want to read about the area starts in the 60''s, and Max gets to it as quickly as he can, although the 50's are really when the area revved up with fashion (Mary Quant opened a boutique there), theater (Look Back in Anger debuts) and music (with coffee houses and skiffle evolving into rock'n'roll). He devotes a bit of time to the 50's, but it all feels like a prelude to the swingin' 60's.

As Decharne tries to be all encompassing for the area, there are bits'n'pieces that are NOT going to be interesting to part of his audience, although everything does intertwine somewhat, and movies, theater, food'n'fashion, art'n'music all intersect by way of location, if not direct interaction.

Surprisingly for me, anyway, is that the 70's era is even more interesting than the 60's, as glam lays the groundwork for punk, and fashion, films and theater all follow along with the wild, androgynous looks and uninhibited, anything goes sexual escapades. Even though I lived through the times (as a youngster), I do sometimes forget how the timelines of different events overlapped and how early certain looks'n'sounds evolved. I assume the author must be around my age as he obviously remembers this era most fondly, as well. 

After the 70's punk era, the street takes a downturn, at least in Becharne's eyes, and he kind of ties things up fairly quickly from there.

Definitely interesting, but I had hoped for something a little more captivating. Not bad, but not great either, although those with an interest in the area will certainly find things to dig.

recommended gigs

          

Saturday 10-5-24 - Farewell party for Christy Larson with the Time Crashers and more at the Founder's Club

Saturday 10-5-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 10-6-24 - Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch for Nikki Ruffling's Birthday!

Monday 10-7-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 10-12-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 10-13-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 10-14-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 10-16-24 - Johnny Zig and the Force at Mr. D's

Wednesday 10-16-24 - New Waves and Sant Anna Bay Coconuts at Red Dwarf

Thursday 10-17-24 - Dr. Phobic and the Phobic-Tones and the Unoriginal Unfits at Red Dwarf

Friday 10-18-24 - Big Sandy with Shanda and the Howlers at the Sand Dollar Downtown 

Friday 10-18-24 & Saturday 10-19-24 - Rayford Bros./BatBand at the Golden Tiki

Saturday 10-19-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 10-21-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 10-23-24 - Dion Lunadon, the Acid Sisters, Cromm Fallon and the P200 at the Usual Place 

Thursday 10-24-24 - Negative Nancys, Switch to Fakie and Mersa at the Triple Down at the Punk Rock Museum

Saturday 10-26-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 10-27-24 - Generic Surf Band at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 10-28-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Thursday 10-31-24 - The Jackets and more at the Dive Bar

Saturday 11-2-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-4-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-6-24 - Franks'n'Deans Weenie Roast at the Double Down

Friday 11-8-24 - Femaliens with Rhythm Ace and the Nu-Tones at Red Dwarf

Saturday 11-9-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-11-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-13-24 - Hillbilly Casino and Shanda and the Howlers at the Usual Place

Saturday 11-16-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Sunday 11-17-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at Red Dwarf's Sunday Brunch

Monday 11-18-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Friday 11-22-24 - The Implosions, The Ghostwood Murder and the Hideaway at Fat Cat

Friday 11-22-24 - Venomous Pinks, Minges, Femaliens, the Has Knots at the Griffin

Saturday 11-23-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki

Monday 11-25-24 - Thee Swank Bastards at the Golden Tiki

Wednesday 11-27-24 - Thee Swank Bastards' Basstravaganza At the Double Down

Saturday 11-30-24 - Thee Swank Bastards late night at the Golden Tiki